Proper safety measures often require that items be contained within a protective sleeving. Piping or hoses, for instance, may need to be sleeved to prevent any accidental spillage into their environment in the event that the piping or hoses spring a leak. The piping or hoses may contain cooling water inhibited with sodium chromate, hazardous chemicals, or may carry materials that, by themselves, are harmless but which pose a danger with chemicals or other substances found in their environment.
In addition to piping and hoses, proper safety measures require that other items be sleeved. For instance, items that have been exposed, or potentially exposed, to hazardous chemicals or radioactive materials within a hazardous area must be contained before they are removed from the hazardous area. Conductivity probes and other components are items that are frequently found within a radioactive environment and are contained prior to their removal from this environment.
Presently, the piping, hoses, and other items are contained or sleeved by manually sliding rolls of plastic sleeving over the item. This process is cumbersome and difficult and can be especially difficult with items that are long or heavy. The process is typically both time consuming and labor intensive since it may require more than one person to contain the item. A need therefore exists for an apparatus which renders the sleeving process quicker, easier, and less labor intensive.
Another problem with the current method of containing pipes, hoses, or other items is that the plastic sleeving often becomes damaged during the containment of the item. When the sleeving is being placed around the item, the plastic sleeving is moved over the item and can easily become torn by the item. Tears or rips in the sleeving are unacceptable from a safety perspective and, as a result, the item must be resleeved. The process of sleeving or containing the item is thus further delayed and made more laborious.